Protesters blocked Waterloo Bridge, Westminster Bridge, Lambeth Bridge and Vauxhall Bridge with sit-ins after marching from 25 points around central London. Just Stop Oil campaigners said protesters would gather in Westminster, where a crowd led by a samba band had already gathered in Parliament Square. Hundreds had earlier sat on Westminster Bridge, blocking traffic, and moved after police warned them they would be arrested if they stayed. Among those sitting on Westminster Bridge was Esme Garlake, 26, from London. “I think we’re at a real turning point now where the inequalities in our society are so apparent,” he said. “Today is energy bill day [price rise] and so diverse groups and grassroots movements are beginning to realize that we must come together to demand social change and climate action.” Garlake sat next to her mother, Marilyn Garlake, 59, of Oxford, who said she saw synergies between climate activism and cost-of-living crises. “It’s reached a tipping point now,” he said. “If you look at what’s happening with the cost of living crisis and the climate crisis, it’s all coming together and we have a government that refuses to take the action that’s needed and makes it worse.” Climate campaigners took to the streets in London as cost of living campaigners Enough Is Enough also held rallies. The protests came as 200,000 union members walked off the job, with rail unions RMT, Aslef and TSSA, and postal workers union CWU, striking over pay and conditions. Enough Is Enough, which has been backed by senior RMT and CWU figures as well as prominent left-wing MPs, claims 800,000 have signed up to support its demands. He has called for above-inflation pay rises, cuts to energy bills, a massive drive to build new homes, support for people who can’t afford it and more taxes on the wealthiest. Her campaign comes as the government has cut taxes on top earners and hinted at massive real-terms cuts to benefits. The Stop Oil Protest in London gathered on Westminster Bridge. Photo: Antonio Olmos/The Observer On Saturday, the group held rallies in Birmingham, Bristol, Cardiff, Glasgow, Liverpool, Manchester and Norwich. Just Stop Oil joined in the autumn after a spring and summer of non-violent civil disobedience protests against England’s fuel distribution network. As part of a coalition of groups including Insulate Britain, Animal Rebellion and Jeremy Corbyn’s Peace and Justice Project, it has broadened its demands from an end to all new oil infrastructure to include more taxes on the rich and support with energy bills. Corbyn, the former Labor leader, drew rapturous applause as he denounced the government’s plans to cut taxes for the richest and benefits for the poorest. “Our strength is our organization, our strength is our unity,” Corbyn said. “So let’s stand up for what we believe in.” Dave Ward, the CWU general secretary, said the campaign would push Labor “to the right place to stand up for workers”. “It’s the job of anybody who cares about people in this country getting a fair deal for everything, we have to build collective,” Ward said. “Are you ready for this? Enough is enough. Let’s get out there: protest, rally. We will make a change.” Sources from the Enough Is Enough campaign told the Guardian there was no coordination between the two groups before Saturday’s protests.
